Skip to main content
FourFourTwo FourFourTwo FOOTBALL NEWS, FEATURES, QUIZZES
Sign in
  • View Profile
  • Sign out
flag of UK
UK
flag of Australia
Australia
flag of US
US
flag of Canada
Canada
flag of 대한민국
대한민국
flag of Türkiye
Türkiye
  • Soccer Cleat Buying Guides
  • Newsletter
  • News
  • Video
  • Features
  • Quizzes
  • Clubs
  • More
    • Interviews
    • The Magazine Archive
    • Subscribe
    • Lists
    • How to watch
    • About
FourFourTwo Magazine
FourFourTwo Magazine
Why subscribe?
  • Fascinating feature articles, covering everything from grass-roots football to the international scene
  • 'ACCESS ALL AREAS' pass to exclusive interviews with the biggest and best names in the game!
From$29.99
Subscribe now
Trending
  • WATCH the UCL
  • Transfers
  • Interviews
  • Messi
  • Ronaldo
  • EPL
Recommended reading
Barcelona
Lists Ranked! The 50 greatest Barcelona players of all time
Referee David Elleray shows Red card to Duncan Ferguson of Everton and Sends him Off during the Premier League match between Blackburn Rovers and Everton at Ewood Park on September 21, 1996 in Blackburn, England.
Sport ‘A striker getting the most red cards is no good, I don’t see myself as that person. Some of my reds were ridiculous. One was for singing to a referee!’ Duncan Ferguson feels he doesn’t deserve the Premier League record for most red cards
Lionel Messi celebrates after scoring a header for Barcelona against Manchester United in the 2009 Champions League final in Rome.
Football The Greatest Football XI of All Time - according to FourFourTwo
Sky Sports pundit Roy Keane looks on during the Premier League match between Manchester City and Aston Villa at Etihad Stadium on May 22, 2022 in Manchester, England.
Quiz Quiz! Can you tell us who this iconic Roy Keane quotes were about?
Ranked! The 50 best managers in the world
Lists Ranked! The 50 best managers in the world right now
Liverpool forward Mohamed Salah has enjoyed a season to remember
Football The Greatest Ever Premier League XI - according to FourFourTwo
Ranked! The 10 best goalkeepers in the world
Lists Ranked! The 10 best goalkeepers in the world
  1. Features

Ranked! 12 of football's biggest ever tantrums

By Greg Lea published 4 April 2018

When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Here’s how it works.

Biggest tantrums

Biggest tantrums

Football is an emotional game, and players can occasionally overstep the mark when the stakes are high (and sometimes when they’re not).

In this slideshow we pick out 12 of the biggest tantrums the game has ever seen, featuring birthday cakes, flip flops, car parks and South American golf trips…

Page 1 of 13
Page 1 of 13
12. Saido Berahino vs his club

12. Saido Berahino vs his club

It wasn't the most thrilling of will-he-won't-he transfer sagas, but Berahino's proposed move from West Brom to Tottenham had its fair share of twists and turns in summer 2015.

It's safe to say the striker wasn't best pleased when the transfer fell through on deadline day, with Baggies chairman Jeremy Peace the recipient of the youngster's ire on Twitter: "Sad how i cant say exactly how the club has treated me but i can officially say i will never play Jeremy Peace". As it happened, Berahino played for Albion just 11 days later – and by the time he did get a move, to Stoke in January 2017, Peace had already sold his Baggies stake to a Chinese consortium for a rumoured £175m.

Page 2 of 13
Page 2 of 13
11. Andros Townsend vs a fitness coach

11. Andros Townsend vs a fitness coach

Nobody wants to be an unused substitute in the Premier League, especially if you’re concurrently pushing for a spot in the England starting XI. That’s the situation in which Townsend found himself in 2015, with the winger taking out his frustrations on Tottenham fitness coach Nathan Gardiner after being urged to work harder in a post-game warm-down.

Manager Mauricio Pochettino wasn’t impressed and, in a bid to demonstrate his authority to the rest of the squad, promptly sold Townsend to Newcastle in the January transfer window.

Page 3 of 13
Page 3 of 13
10. Yaya Toure('s agent) vs a lack of cake

10. Yaya Toure('s agent) vs a lack of cake

Most tantrums occur in the heat of the moment on the field of play, so Toure deserves credit for finding a way to kick off when he wasn't even at work.

"What happened at his birthday meant the club don't care about him," an outraged Dimitri Seluk, the Manchester City midfielder’s representative, told the media after the Ivorian was supposedly denied a cake to mark his 31st anniversary on earth.

There was more to the story than initially met the eye, though, with City later releasing a video of club staff presenting Toure with a cake on a flight to Abu Dhabi. Seluk's explanation turned out to be half-baked.

Page 4 of 13
Page 4 of 13
9. Mido vs his manager

9. Mido vs his manager

As Egypt's star player, Mido did not expect to be substituted with 11 minutes of the 2006 Africa Cup of Nations semi-final. But that's the decision made by manager Hassa Shehata – who was proved right when replacement Amr Zaki, who later played in the Premier League for Wigan and Hull, scored with his first touch.

By then, Mido and Sheheta had almost come to blows on the touchline, and the Tottenham striker had lost the public vote. Egypt fans chanted "Mido out", albeit presumably not in English; the press called for Mido's expulsion from the squad, which was duly confirmed along with a six-month ban from his own country's FA.

Page 5 of 13
Page 5 of 13
8. Cristiano Ronaldo vs a team-mate

8. Cristiano Ronaldo vs a team-mate

Ronaldo is one of football's most frequent tantrum-throwers, but he was probably justified in going off on one on this occasion. After giving Gerard Pique twisted blood down the left flank in a 2010 international friendly between Spain and Portugal, the Real Madrid man beautifully scooped the ball over the head of Iker Casillas and, seemingly, into the back of the net. 

Before it crossed the line, though, Nani applied a needless touch with his head, thus prompting the linesman to raise his flag for offside. Ronaldo, it's safe to say, wasn't overly happy with his colleague.

Page 6 of 13
Page 6 of 13
7. Peter Odemwingie vs a non-transfer

7. Peter Odemwingie vs a non-transfer

Peter Odemwingie won 63 international caps, was transferred for an eight-figure fee, and scored top-flight goals in six different countries (Nigeria, Belgium, France, Russia, England and Indonesia). But most people remember him for 31 January 2013.

Then at West Brom, the striker was so desperate to move to QPR that he sped down the M40 to Loftus Road, the better to expedite the deadline-day deal. Trouble was, the clubs hadn't actually agreed to the transfer, so the red-faced player was refused entry and forced to try and find a parking space while the transfer collapsed. It wasn’t his finest hour.

Page 7 of 13
Page 7 of 13
6. Carlos Tevez vs warming up

6. Carlos Tevez vs warming up

For a man partly responsible for popularising the snood as an acceptable part of a player's wardrobe, Carlos Tevez seemed curiously unwilling to warm up one fateful night at the Allianz Arena. With Man City 2-0 down to Bayern in September 2011, Roberto Mancini told his Argentinian substitute to prepare for battle – but Tevez refused, apparently angered that the Italian had already introduced Nigel De Jong as his first replacement.

An outraged Mancini insisted Tevez – top scorer the previous season – would never play for the club again. For his part, Tevez shrugged off a club fine of six weeks' wages – around £1.2m – by disappearing to play golf in his homeland. But six months later, a rapprochement allowed Tevez to return - and help City to the Premier League title.

Page 8 of 13
Page 8 of 13
5. Sheikh Fahid Al-Ahmad-Al Sabah vs a decision

5. Sheikh Fahid Al-Ahmad-Al Sabah vs a decision

Manchester City's owner isn't the only sheikh to have had an influence on the global game. When France were awarded a goal during their World Cup tie with Kuwait in 1982, the Kuwaiti FA president Sheikh Fahid Al-Ahmad-Al Sabah launched a one-man pitch invasion to take up the issue with the referee.

Remarkably, said official changed his mind and agreed to chalk off the strike. If decisions go against City in the latter stages of the Champions League, perhaps Pep Guardiola will overlook his subs and send on his boss.

Page 9 of 13
Page 9 of 13
4. Pierre van Hooijdonk vs turning up for work

4. Pierre van Hooijdonk vs turning up for work

Nottingham Forest striker Van Hooijdonk clearly enjoyed playing with Kevin Campbell, so the East Midlanders' decision to sell the former Arsenal man to Trabzonspor in 1998 was never likely to go down well with the Dutchman, who’d been told by the club's hierarchy that Forest would be strengthening their squad that summer.

Van Hooijdonk responded by going on strike, although he later expressed regret about his handling of the situation. He wasn’t feeling completely repentant, however.

“I should have waited until the end of August,” Van Hooijdonk later told FourFourTwo. “[But manager Dave Bassett] was a rat, a snake, and he still keeps saying things about me.”

Page 10 of 13
Page 10 of 13
3. Didier Drogba vs keeping it together

3. Didier Drogba vs keeping it together

Referee Tom Henning Ovrebo turned down multiple appeals for a Chelsea penalty in their Champions League semi-final in 2009, with Andres Iniesta's late strike sending Barça through at the Blues’ expense.

It was all too much for Drogba, who angrily approached the official after the final whistle while wearing a pair of flip-flops – he had been substituted before the end of the game – and then telling TV cameras the entire episode was a "f***ing disgrace".

Drogba eventually recovered from the setback, scoring the decisive spot-kick to win Chelsea their first-ever European Cup in a shoot-out with Bayern Munich three years later.

Page 11 of 13
Page 11 of 13
2. Paolo Di Canio vs going quietly

2. Paolo Di Canio vs going quietly

Di Canio could feasibly have filled this list by himself, but the most memorable of the Italian's many tantrums was his strop while playing for Sheffield Wednesday against Arsenal in 1998.

A clash with Martin Keown earned Di Canio a red card, but that wasn't the end of the trouble: the striker responded by shoving referee Paul Alcock, earning himself an 11-match ban and £10,000 fine in the process. In fairness to the Italian, Alcock did go down extremely easily.

Page 12 of 13
Page 12 of 13
1. William Gallas vs calm acceptance

1. William Gallas vs calm acceptance

In February 2008, a late penalty from James McFadden salvaged a point for Birmingham against Arsenal, whose title chances were harmed by their failure to emerge victorious.

Gallas responded to the disappointment by huffing around the pitch at the final whistle and staging a sit-down protest in the centre circle while his team-mates headed down the tunnel and into the dressing room.

Seeing colleague Eduardo da Silva suffer a horrific injury in the same game certainly added to the emotion of the occasion, but the defender later admitted his reaction was a "mistake".

Page 13 of 13
Page 13 of 13
Greg Lea
Greg Lea
Social Links Navigation

Greg Lea is a freelance football journalist who's filled in wherever FourFourTwo needs him since 2014. He became a Crystal Palace fan after watching a 1-0 loss to Port Vale in 1998, and once got on the scoresheet in a primary school game against Wilfried Zaha's Whitehorse Manor (an own goal in an 8-0 defeat).

Read more
Barcelona
Ranked! The 50 greatest Barcelona players of all time
Referee David Elleray shows Red card to Duncan Ferguson of Everton and Sends him Off during the Premier League match between Blackburn Rovers and Everton at Ewood Park on September 21, 1996 in Blackburn, England.
‘A striker getting the most red cards is no good, I don’t see myself as that person. Some of my reds were ridiculous. One was for singing to a referee!’ Duncan Ferguson feels he doesn’t deserve the Premier League record for most red cards
Lionel Messi celebrates after scoring a header for Barcelona against Manchester United in the 2009 Champions League final in Rome.
The Greatest Football XI of All Time - according to FourFourTwo
Sky Sports pundit Roy Keane looks on during the Premier League match between Manchester City and Aston Villa at Etihad Stadium on May 22, 2022 in Manchester, England.
Quiz! Can you tell us who this iconic Roy Keane quotes were about?
Ranked! The 50 best managers in the world
Ranked! The 50 best managers in the world right now
Liverpool forward Mohamed Salah has enjoyed a season to remember
The Greatest Ever Premier League XI - according to FourFourTwo
Latest in Lists
Best football adverts
The 14 best football adverts EVER
Football Manager 2026 wonderkids
Football Manager 2026 wonderkids: The FM26 young stars we predict for the game
The 100 most expensive football transfers of all time: Florian Wirtz is unveiled as a Liverpool player after his signing at AXA Training Centre on June 20, 2025 in Kirkby, England.
The 100 most expensive football transfers of all time
NOTTINGHAM, ENGLAND - JANUARY 30: Laura Woods, TNT Sports presenter before the Premier League match between Nottingham Forest and Arsenal FC at City Ground on January 30, 2024 in Nottingham, England. (Photo by Richard Sellers/Sportsphoto/Allstar via Getty Images)
Women's Euro 2025: Who are the ITV presenters, pundits and commentators?
BBC Sport Presenter, Alex Scott, reacts prior to the Barclays Women's Super League match between Everton and Manchester City at Walton Hall Park on December 15, 2024 in Liverpool, England.
Women's Euro 2025: Who are the BBC presenters, pundits and commentators?
The 100 most expensive football transfers of all time: Florian Wirtz is unveiled as a Liverpool player after his signing at AXA Training Centre on June 20, 2025 in Kirkby, England.
The 100 most expensive football transfers of all time
Latest in Features
Christian Eriksen applauds the Manchester United fans after his final appearance for the club, against Aston Villa in the Premier League, in May 2025.
Christian Eriksen move shows scale of Wrexham ambitions even as former Manchester United man sets sights elsewhere
Mo Salah scored a record points tally in FPL last season
FPL: How to make a fast start in Fantasy Premier League 2025-26 with early points
Fantasy Premier League 2025-26
FPL: 15 essential Fantasy Premier League tips from past winners and experts
England fans before the Lionesses' Euro 2025 final victory over Spain
When is the Lionesses Parade: All you need to know about England's Euro 2025 victory celebrations, how to attend and how to watch on TV
Chloe Kelly's winning penalty for England against Spain in the Euro 2025 final shootout
Chloe Kelly's penalty technique explained – Why does the England forward lift her left knee into the air before taking spot kicks?
Max Dowman sitting on the bench for Arsenal
Who is Max Dowman? The 15-year-old prodigy making a splash for Arsenal
LATEST ARTICLES
  1. Gabriel Jesus of Arsenal during the Carabao Cup Third Round match between Arsenal and Bolton Wanderers at Emirates Stadium on September 25, 2024 in London, England.
    1
    Arsenal report: Gabriel Jesus agrees exit, with dream transfer 'dismissed'
  2. 2
    Newcastle United's 2025-26 away kit pays homage to one of the city's most famous landmarks, but is there a deeper meaning
  3. 3
    Chelsea set to beat Arsenal to deal for highly-rated Dutch wonderkid: report
  4. 4
    "Real Madrid wanted me. It was exciting, but I wasn’t keen at the time!" Ex-Arsenal and Liverpool Jermaine Pennant reveals career regret
  5. 5
    Christian Eriksen move shows scale of Wrexham ambitions even as former Manchester United man sets sights elsewhere

FourFourTwo is part of Future US Inc, an international media group and leading digital publisher. Visit our corporate site.

  • Terms and conditions
  • Contact Future's experts
  • Privacy policy
  • Cookies policy
  • Accessibility statement
  • Careers
  • About FourFourTwo
  • Advertise with us
  • Worldwide
  • How to pitch to FourFourTwo

© Future US, Inc. Full 7th Floor, 130 West 42nd Street, New York, NY 10036.

Please login or signup to comment

Please wait...